


5, 4, 3, 2, 1

by greatbigvoid



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Attempted Kidnapping, Attempted Murder, False Identity, Kidnapping, M/M, Murder, Paranoia, Psychological Torture, Rape/Non-con Elements, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2019-07-28
Packaged: 2020-07-19 06:01:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19969201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greatbigvoid/pseuds/greatbigvoid
Summary: Tony Stark and Steve Rogers are happily married and have a teenage son, Peter. Their life is picture perfect. Until it isn’t anymore.Steve comes home covered in blood, with a horrifying story to tell. Their life has now been turned upside down, and the people behind it have no intentions to stop.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: This story is messed up, it’s not a happy one. There will be graphic descriptions of rape, violence/torture, and/or murder in chapters 4, 9, and 10. In the rest of the chapters any other mentions of these things will not be graphic. Don’t read if you’re uncomfortable with any of those things. Let me know what you think of this.

Prologue

He shouldn’t be here. He should be at home with his husband and son, arguing over which Star Wars movie is the best, not in an abandoned building. He runs through the hallways, desperately searching for a way out in the dark- all of the lights are broken and he lost his flashlight. He pants as he finds a stairwell and rushes down it, but he doesn’t remember how he got up so many floors. He doesn’t have time to remember, he thinks, as he finally barrels out of the building into the empty parking lot. Instinct tells him where he parked his car earlier, when the sun was still high in the sky, and he can’t get to it fast enough. His car is unlocked- it’s the little things, he thinks to himself- and he turns the key quickly, peeling away from the curb, tires screeching.

His heart pounds as he drives recklessly through the night, his panic never ending. Running through red lights are dangerous, he knows, but nothing is going to slow him down. He narrowly avoids hitting a car head on and swerves violently back into his own lane, eyes wide. He needs to calm down and focus, but that’s impossible. He can still feel the dried blood covering his body and he wants to throw up. His head throbs as blood slowly trickles down it- head wounds bleed the most, he vaguely remembers someone telling him- and the bright street lights only make it worse. Another car almost hits him and he swerves again, barely missing the curb. His whole body shakes as he continues to drive, pressing on the gas pedal harder- he has to get home. The tires make an awful noise as he turns into his neighborhood, and a moment later he pulls up into his driveway, slamming on the breaks.

Chapter 1

Tony Stark is not a patient man. He wants things done as quickly and proficiently as possible, which in his line of work is not always the best quality. However, it doesn’t stop him from becoming one of the most successful doctors in the state of New York. He’s been in the field ever since he turned 16 and graduated high school early, going to one of the most prestigious medical schools in all of the country. What can he says, he’s a genius. And his father has money, but that’s not the point. He now only works with the best of the best, and can easily say that his life is picture perfect.

He’s married to Steve Rogers, a bulky blonde nurse with a heart of gold and an attitude. They met years ago, when Steve became his intern. Steve was originally going to work for Brock Rumlow- a man who still makes his blood boil- but Rumlow found someone else, and thus Steve went to Tony. The day they met is still burned in his brain, and Tony knows he won’t ever forget it. The second he looked into those beautiful, ocean blue eyes, he knew he had found the one. Their relationship has always been easy and carefree, despite the difficulty of their jobs. So, it was only natural that Tony proposed to him after a year of dating, and Steve tearfully said yes, kissing him passionately once Tony slipped the ring onto his finger. They got married in the spring with only their closest friends and family in attendance- Steve refused to have a giant wedding much to Tony’s desires. Then in the fall, the husbands adopted a beautiful boy named Peter, who is still their pride and joy.

It’s currently a nice day in September and Tony is at home in the kitchen, starting to make dinner for his family. Peter is doing his homework on the kitchen counter, brown curls falling across his face. Tony wipes his hands off on a dish towel and brushes the hair out of his son’s face, smirking when Peter glares at him. “I’m surprised you can even see what you’re doing with all that hair in your face, kiddo.” Peter flips him off and Tony just laughs at the teenager, shaking his head as he turns back to the stove, slowly stirring the pasta in its pot. He glances at the clock and frowns when he sees the time. It’s not unusual for Steve to be gone this late, being a nurse is very time consuming, but he always calls Tony when he knows he’ll have to come home late. Tony debates calling his husband, but he tells himself that Steve probably forgot to let him know, and continues to make dinner despite feeling like something is wrong.

“Hey dad, when’s mom gonna be home?” Peter asks when Tony is setting the table a half hour later. Tony’s lip quirks up at the word mom; Peter had jokingly called Steve that years ago, but somehow it stuck. “I’m not sure, Pete. Why don’t you call him?” The teen nods and Tony leans against the counter where Peter is sitting, crossing his arms. Peter calls his ‘mom’ but Steve doesn’t answer the phone. Tony bites his lips and makes Peter call Steve a second time. Again, there is no answer and Peter tries once more, but there is still no response. “Should we call the cops?” Peter’s voice is filled with worry, but Tony shakes his head. “No. If he doesn’t show up tonight then tomorrow morning we can call them.” Truthfully, he did want to call the cops, not only because he’s impatient and wanting his husband to be home on time, but because Steve has never done this before. He makes sure to always pick up his phone on the first ring- Tony’s patience does not last long and he knows it.

The bad feeling that is plaguing him only gets worse, but he once again tries to ignore it. Peter and him eat dinner in relative silence, only making small talk about Peter’s day at school and some asshole kid named Flash. It’s clear that they’re both worried about Steve, but neither of them bring it up as they clean up the kitchen once dinner is over. Tony looks out the window above the sink as he dries the dishes, his worry deepening as the street remains empty, Steve nowhere to be seen. Suddenly Peter is pressing himself against his father, hugging the man tightly. “I just want him to come home, dad, I’m scared. He never does this.” Tony’s eyes water as he hears the wavering in his son’s voice and he presses a kiss to Peter’s forehead, wrapping his arms around the teen’s waist. “I know, sweetheart, I’m scared too.” Tony is not one to express how he feels, but right now he can’t hide how terrified he is.

His mind races as he thinks about what could be happening to Steve right now. What if he’s been kidnapped? Is he being tortured? Did he somehow get lost and can’t find a way back home? Has someone murdered him? The last thought shakes him to his core- he can’t live without Steve. Steve is his rock, the one thing that keeps him together and is always there. He doesn’t know what he would do without his husband; could he take care of Peter alone? Making dinner for the two of them is easy enough, but what if Tony messes everything else up? What if he becomes like his own father and becomes so engrossed in his work that he won’t give a shit about his child? What if-

Tony is startled when a car pulls up to the driveway, almost hitting the garage door. The car door opens, and there Steve is- covered in blood. Tony runs to the front door, Peter close behind him, and opens it, pulling Steve into his arms. “Oh my god, Steve, what the hell happened to you?” The relief that fills Tony is immense, and he can’t help but kiss him, the taste of blood on Steve’s lips flooding his mouth. It slightly disgusts him, but he couldn’t care less right now; all that matters is Steve is home and safe with him. Tony pulls away and Peter gently pushes him off of Steve, and starts crying as he hugs Steve. It breaks his heart to see his son so upset, but what hurts more is the condition his lover is in.

Steve’s face is covered in bruises, and his bottom lip is bleeding; hence the blood Tony tasted when he kissed him. There’s blood dripping down the left side of his face, obviously from a head wound; Tony can’t see it, but he suspects it might need stitches. The rest of his body doesn’t look any better. His right shoulder has a gash, but it looks like it stopped bleeding, although it appears to be the main cause of the blood covering Steve’s white shirt. He can’t really see Steve’s legs because Peter is still standing there, grasping onto him, but Tony knows they won’t look good. Peter, after several minutes, lets go of his father and sniffles, rubbing at his eyes. “Mom?” His voice is hoarse but watery, and Steve looks down at him, a sad smile on his face. “I’m right here, Pete. I’m gonna be okay.” Peter hugs him tightly again before leaving, his footsteps quiet on the stairs.

“Stevie, what happened?” Tony asks gently as he guides Steve upstairs and into the bathroom. Steve sits down on the edge of the bathtub, wincing as he does. He doesn’t say a word and stares at the wall, seemingly oblivious of Tony carefully removing his shirt. It’s freaking Tony out- his husband can be quiet at times, but he’s never like this. Tony doesn’t know what to do now except to patch Steve up and wait for him to talk. He slowly cleans the wound on Steve’s head, delicately stitching it closed, pointedly ignoring the look of pain etched on his face. He offers no words- they have never been his thing- but he hopes his touch is enough to comfort Steve. After what feels like ages, Steve is covered in bandages and looks decently clean. Tony helps him into a pair of sweatpants, careful to not touch any of the bruises covering his legs.

Tony officially hates seeing Steve this way; he’s not supposed to come home late and looking like he got in a nasty street fight, and he’s definitely not supposed to be this quiet. It’s unnerving him, but he knows he can’t freak out or Steve will freak out too, and he doesn’t want to deal with that. So instead, he gets in bed and lies next to Steve, who looks at him with tears in his eyes. “Can you…” Tony can’t finish his sentence, but Steve nods anyway, tearing his eyes away. “I was going to leave work early and surprise you when you got home…”


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Tony can only listen in horror as his husband tells him what happened hours earlier; it makes him sick to think about how he was peacefully unaware of the agony that Steve was going through while he was having a good day at work. The first words out of his mouth after Steve is done talking are: “We need to call the police.” Steve looks at him with panic on his face and shakes his head, “No we can’t.” “What do you mean we can’t? He beat the shit out of you, cut you, and fucking raped you, Steve! Why the hell shouldn’t we call them?” Immediately, Tony regrets raising his voice as Steve flinches, the wild look in eyes he had when he ran inside the house returning. “Shit, honey, I’m sorry for yelling, I’m just really scared and worried, and I want to put this asshole where he-” “No, no, it’s okay,” Steve takes a deep breath and the look in his eyes leaves once again. “It’s just that… when he was, um, hurting me,” A sob comes out of Steve’s mouth and Tony wraps his arms around him, feeling the tremors running though his body. “He said that, he would… he would kill you and Peter if I told the cops.” Steve barely finishes speaking before he’s bawling on Tony’s shoulder.

Tony decides that this is the worst moment of his life. Nothing his shitty father ever did to him hurts him as much as Steve being damaged to this extreme. He has never seen his husband so scared and distressed in his life, and that alone is saying something considering Steve has seen a lot as a nurse. He wishes that this never happened; that Steve had come home early like he was planning to instead of getting kidnapped by a monster, and they could have had a nice night together. It’s selfish, he knows, to wish this didn’t occur for his own benefit, but he can’t help it. He shouldn’t have to worry about the love of his life being torn apart while he’s doing his job, that’s not how things should work. But he knows that’s how this is going to go. Steve will undoubtedly stay home for at least a few days, and the thought of him being alone scares Tony- he doesn’t want Steve to get hurt again.

As Steve continues to cry, and Tony tries his best to comfort him with loving words, their bedroom door opens. Peter stands there awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable with hearing his father sobbing. “Um, the police are here? Should I, uh, tell them to come back later?” His voice is barely above a whisper and Tony wants to tell him to ask the police to leave, but he figures he should probably talk to them himself- if only to spare Peter the trauma if something else is wrong. “No, it’s alright, I’ll go seem them myself. Can you tell them I’ll be down in a minute?” Peter nods and silently leaves the room, leaving the door cracked open. As soon as Peter opened the door, Steve’s cries had quieted down, but Tony hopes the police didn’t hear him- he knew how embarrassed Steve would be. “Sweetheart, is it okay if I go down there alone? I promise I’ll make it quick, okay?” He looks at his husband who nods, wiping his tears away with his hand. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Steve’s voice breaking and his shaky hands don’t convince Tony at all, but he kisses Steve softly and heads downstairs.

Peter is sitting on their sectional couch in the living room waiting for him, arms wrapped around his torso and biting his lip. “Why don’t you go upstairs, Pete?” His son nods and retreats up the stairs. “I’m officer David Bradley, and this is John Oliver,” Tony vaguely recognizes them, and then he realizes that he’s seen them around at the hospital before. David is a tall, brown haired man who looks surprisingly gentle for a cop. Tony thinks it’s because David is lanky and seems like the nerdy type with his giant, black rimmed glasses. His co-worker, John, has blonde hair and piercing blue eyes, but he’s nowhere near as tall and lanky as David is. “We’re here because someone made a 911 call about your husband, Steve, driving recklessly through town. Do you mind if we speak with him?” Tony immediately shakes his head, not even bothering to give the cops a second of Steve’s time. “No. And unless you’re here to arrest him, I’m going to have to ask you to leave. Right now really isn’t a good time.” John looks at him suspiciously, but Tony doesn’t care. He’s been worried about Steve ever since he stepped foot out of the bedroom, and he wants to make sure his husband is okay. The two men stare at him for a few moments before leaving without another word. Tony watches them leave through the window before going back to the bedroom.

He finds Peter showing Steve something on his phone, and it brings a small smile to his face. Leave it to their sweet son to try and make Steve feel better while Tony is busy. Peter looks up at Tony and then turns to Steve. “I love you mom.” He says, hugging Steve, who kisses his forehead. “I love you too, sweetheart, so much.” Tony has a feeling that Peter is planning to leave now, but he wants all of them to be together because he knows that will make Steve feel safe. Peter gets up and walks to the door, but Tony gently grabs his arm to stop him from going. “I want you to stay with us tonight, okay? We need to make him feel safe right now.” He whispers and the teen nods, and quietly slips back into the bed, this time staying on Steve’s left side. Tony lays down next to his husband and pulls him close, Steve’s head resting on his chest. He presses kisses to his face softly and runs a hand through his blonde hair. He can feel Steve’s shaking slowly start to subside and glances over at Peter, who is turned away from them, but is close enough that his back is pressed lightly against the side of their bodies. Tony doesn’t know how long he stays awake for after Steve has fallen asleep, but he can’t stop thinking about the past few hours.

He really cannot comprehend the fact that his husband was kidnapped and tortured while he was completely oblivious to it. He knows that it is not his fault, that he couldn’t have possibly known anything was going on, but he still feels like he could have done something differently. He could have gone to see Steve during his break like he usually does, but today he had been so busy that there was no time for that- there had been no time for him to worry that something was wrong. The what if’s cloud his brain again, and Tony just wants to scream about how unfair this whole situation is, but deep down he realizes this is not about him. It’s about the most important person in his life being hurt, and he can’t fathom how Steve must feel. It’s giving him a headache- and he would go downstairs to try and clear his mind, but he can’t disturb Steve. So he falls asleep after several restless hours, the questions and regrets still running through his mind.

When Steve wakes up the next morning, he’s disoriented. His head is spinning and he feels like he could pass out and oh shit- he probably has a concussion. Tony isn’t in bed anymore, and Steve sits up in a panic. However, Tony appears a second later as he walks out of the bathroom. “Hey, it’s okay, honey, I’m right here.” Tony kisses him, gently cusping the sides of his face. “How are you feeling?” He says once he pulls away, their foreheads touching. “I think I have a concussion.” Tony frowns at that. “I thought nurses weren’t supposed to give self-diagnoses.” Steve laughs and Tony kisses him again. It’s soft and sweet, and all Steve wants is to stay like this all day, but realistically they can’t. “Don’t you have to go to work?” He asks as he pulls away, and Tony smiles at him gently. “You think you can get rid of me that easily? I called in and said neither of us could make it today. I think it’s time for a little break anyway.” Relief floods Steve; he knows he’s not ready to be alone yet.

Tony makes him lie back down after he mentions his head still hurts, and slips out of the room to see if Peter is up for school yet. “Peter Benjamin Stark! If you don’t get up right now I’m selling all your video games!” His husband’s ridiculous threats aimed towards his son never fail to amuse him, and right now he’s glad he can focus on that instead of what happened yesterday. The very thought of his abducting makes him shiver, and he closes his eyes, but the image of his kidnapper’s face is still there, haunting him. He should be dead, but he’s not. Maybe it wasn’t luck that he escaped.


End file.
